


In The Air

by rebelwriter6561



Series: Getting Better [3]
Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Feels, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Relationship, so many feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-12
Updated: 2016-10-12
Packaged: 2018-08-21 23:58:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8265149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rebelwriter6561/pseuds/rebelwriter6561
Summary: Warren's recovery moves forward, and so does his relationship with Kurt





	

**Author's Note:**

> Emotionally suffering Warren is my favorite Warren to write.

Kurt had just taken the first bite of his toast, but when Warren burst into the cafeteria, he wisely put it down. Warren seemed agitated, his eye bright and focused solely on him. Kurt could guess that his friend desperately wanted to speak with him again.

He was also shirtless under his leather jacket, and that was very distracting.

“You need to come see this. Right now!” Warren was electric with urgency, grabbing Kurt's shoulders before sliding his hands down to grab under his arms to lift him out of his seat.

Kurt shot to his feet, feeling tingles from where Warren touched him, like the energy had passed to him. “I'll see you in class,” he told the table of his friends who were all looking sternly at Warren. Kurt wanted to say something more to wipe the looks off their faces, but Warren's grip on his arm was already pulling him out of the room.

“What's happened?” he asked as Warren dragged him down the hall towards the stairs. Warren shook his head, eyes still bright but a smile threatening to overcome his usual scowl. Kurt was surprised when his friend brought him to the boys bathroom, shoving the door open and pulling Kurt inside.

“Beat it,” he snapped at the young mutant washing his hands. When the boy scurried out, Warren strode over to the mirrors, pulling off his jacket and turning around. Kurt had a fine view of all his scars and still-healing wounds, as well as his envious muscles.

He grinned madly at Kurt. “Look at them!” Warren breathed as his wings flexed out to fill the space.

Swallowing, Kurt dragged his eyes from Warren's chest and stepped closer, very aware of their proximity. He didn't want to touch the wings, even by accident. Kurt ducked under the one closest to him, so he was between the mirrors and Warren's back. Feeling Warren's excited eyes on him, Kurt stared at his wings, trying to see what Warren was so excited about.

There were still areas of rawness, but most of the skin on Warren's wings was smooth and healed. Puckered patches of bumpy skin - like goosebumps, Kurt mentally chuckled - drew his eyes the most. They seemed different than the surrounding skin - lighter, almost.

Squinting, face close enough to nearly touch the wing, Kurt finally realized what he was seeing. The tiniest patches of fluff were growing from Warren's skin.

“Your feathers!” Kurt breathed, wonder filling him. He turned to Warren, seeing him smile the largest grin Kurt had ever seen.

“They're growing back!” Warren crowed in excitement. He spun around, almost knocking Kurt with his wing, but instead seized Kurt in a hug. It nearly crushed Kurt's ribs, but he was too surprised to react before he let go. Light-headed, Kurt stumbled when Warren released him, but his friend was too excited to notice.

“It took them ages. I thought they'd ever come back.” Warren went back to the mirrors, craning his neck to see his wings outstretched again. “They'll be fully grown in a few weeks - God, that's gonna be forever - and then-”

“And then you'll be free to go.” Kurt finished for him. His ecstatic glee sunk like a stone, but he kept his wavering grin on his face. Of course he was pleased for Warren. He was glad his friend was happy and recovering...but he would miss him. Just thinking about it made his heart ache.

Warren looked at him in shock, his mad grin fading from his face as Kurt's words sunk in. “Yeah,” he agreed softly, avoiding Kurt's eyes. “Then I'm out of here.” He was quiet, and Kurt wondered what he was thinking about.

Warren took a deep breath and shook himself, wings rustling. “It'll still be a few weeks, though. I think the professor won't throw me out until I'm healed, at least.” Arms crossed nonchalantly, he smirked at Kurt, back to his usual self. “You're not getting rid of me that soon.”

“I'm glad,” answered Kurt, because it was true. Sad though he would be, it was what his friend wanted. His own wishes wouldn't matter to Warren anyway. He was just a helpful friend to him, a willing companion who didn't outright hate him.

Warren would never feel for Kurt what he felt about him.

~*~

Later that afternoon, Kurt was silently struggling over his reading in the library. Learning to speak English was difficult enough - reading it was an entirely new challenge. He had an English translation of the Bible on one knee, it's German counterpart (a battered copy gifted to him by Mystique) on the other when the library doors whispered open and admitted Warren.

This time there was no mistaking his foul mood as his eyes scanned the room for Kurt. The other students shied away when he stalked over to Kurt, but he paid them no mind. He collapsed onto the seat next to him on the couch with an annoyed huff. His wings arranged themselves over the backrest, and Kurt thought he saw him wince.

“Is everything okay, Warren?” Kurt barely spoke above a whisper, studying the tight lines around Warren's eyes. He looked like he was in pain.

“Not really, Blue Boy.” Warren scowled at the far wall. He opened his mouth, like he was about to say more, but closed it again, shrugging his shoulders. Kurt recognized his body language from their meeting the professor a week earlier - tight, defensive. Saying quite clearly that he'd rather be anywhere than where he was.

Kurt gently closed his books, putting them aside. He offered a hand to Warren. “Then I would like to show you something now,” he said with a grin. He had a feeling Warren would like this.

Warren grabbed his hand without hesitation, gripping it tightly. Kurt focused on their position and how they would land in their new location. He hoped the noise of their disappearance wouldn't disturb the other readers.

A blast of wind on their faces, after the musty stillness of the library, drew a gasp from Kurt. Still holding Warren's hand, he steadied his friend when he stumbled, going from sitting to standing in a heartbeat.

“Holy shit,” Warren breathed, once again shocked by Kurt's teleporting. He took in the view of the grounds before them, then turned to grin at Kurt. “I knew there had to be a way up here.”

Kurt shrugged. “There is a door, but the Professor keeps it barred.” That hadn't stopped him in the slightest - he'd just scaled the wall.

Still holding his hand, Warren pulled him to the edge of the roof. His wings stretched out behind them, reaching for the sky. If they were fully fledged, like Kurt hoped they would be someday, it would be a magnificent sight.

But they were bare, nothing but skin and bones, muscles and sinew, and the sight just made Kurt incredibly sad.

Warren flapped his wings, wincing as they cut through the air. He turned to face Kurt, the wing behind him pulling in close. “Look at them,” he nodded at his wings. “I might not be leaving so soon after all.”

Turning his head, Kurt saw the scarred patches, previously smooth and pale, now looked red and swollen. “What happened? Did you get hurt?”

Shaking his head, Warren sighed. “Those are the feathers, trying to regrow through the scars.” He ran his fingers lightly over a section of skin, just barely brushing it. “I don't know if they're strong enough to break the skin. I don't know. I don't _fucking_ know.”

Frustration edged Warren's voice, but his anger was directed only at himself. He was gripping Kurt's hand hard enough to make it ache, and Kurt could feel the slightest tremors running down his arm. 

Warren continued, his voice tight. “I've never regrown all my feathers at once, not since I was a kid. I've never had scars to grow through. I haven't been grounded this long in ages...” His voice trailed off, and he closed his eyes, bowing his head. “I don't know if I can fly again.”

His confession slammed in Kurt's chest, making him gasp. “Don't say that!” he pleaded. He couldn't imagine Warren grounded forever, never able to fly again. It would destroy him.

With what seemed to be a lot of effort, Warren forced himself to relax, loosening his grip on Kurt. He swallowed, staring at the view like it had personally offended him. Kurt thought he saw wetness in his eyes.

When he finally spoke again, Warren's voice was heavy and empty. “I don't know what I'll do, if I don't have my wings.” He laughed, short and harsh, and gestured angrily at his face. “I don't even have my looks anymore, my wings were all I had - without them I'm useless. I'm nothing.”

“Stop it, Warren!” Kurt couldn't hear any more. He stepped in front of his friend, grabbing his other hand. He was dangerously close to the edge, but his grip on Warren kept him upright. “You can't say that about yourself.”

“It's true and you know it!” Warren snapped at him. Now he was glaring at Kurt, eyes overbright with tears he wouldn't shed. “I'm damaged goods, I'm worse than useless- I'm unfixable. En Sabah Nur knew it- why do you think he didn't try to get me after the crash? No one wants a useless piece of shit like me around--”

“I said _stop_!” Kurt demanded. He freed his hands so he could cup Warren's face, gently rubbing his fingers over the marks there. “You aren't- you aren't any of those things you said. You're not useless. I...” Kurt trailed off, unsure of what to do - he had no idea how to help his friend now.

Warren stared at him, his empty hands coming up to grip Kurt's sides. Slowly, he bowed his head and rested it against Kurt's, closing his eyes. “I do not...fucking deserve someone like you. What the fuck are you still putting up with me for?”

“Because I'm your friend,” Kurt answered, so simple and easy.

“Yeah? Is this what friends do, put up with emotional breakdowns and all my bullshit?” Warren shook his head, rubbing his forehead across Kurt's. “You really need to rethink what you've gotten into.”

“You're just scared,” Kurt whispered softly, “I know you're not used to having friends, or having someone you can depend on, but you've got me. You're not nothing to me, you're my friend, and I...I really care about you.”

He couldn't say it. He couldn't say what he wanted. Warren wouldn't want to hear it.

“You mean that, don't you?” Warren asked, heartbreakingly soft. Kurt nodded, and Warren moved his hands, brushing them across Kurt's sides to his back, wrapping him in hug. This one was soft, and Kurt returned it just as softly.

His finger brushed the edge of Warren's wing when he gently rubbed Warren's back, and Kurt felt him flinch. But rather than pull away, Kurt felt his back shift as his wings moved, arching around them. If they were fully fledged they'd be surrounded by feathers.

Instead, Kurt felt one rest on his back, right above Warren's hand. The other, blunted and broken, rested gently on his head.

“Can you take me flying, when you're healed?” Kurt asked shyly, muffled against Warren's chest. He felt his friend chuckle.

“Of course buddy. It's a fucking date.” Kurt's chest warmed at the promise. It was something good to look forward for, something that would lift Warren's spirits. Something that would blunt the pain of Warren's departure.

**Author's Note:**

> Think this part was heavy on the feels? Wait for the next one


End file.
